Microsoft DOS del command
Quick links
About del
Availability
Syntax
Examples
About del
Del is a command used to delete files from the computer.
Availability
The del command is an internal command and is available in the below Microsoft operating systems.
All versions of MS-DOS
Windows 95
Windows 98
Windows ME
Windows NT
Windows 2000
Windows XP
Windows Vista
Windows 7
The delete command is a recovery console command and is available in the below Microsoft operating systems.
Windows 2000
Windows XP
Syntax
Windows 95, 98, and ME syntax
Deletes one or more files.
DEL [drive:][path]filename [/P]
ERASE [drive:][path]filename [/P]
| [drive:][path]filename |
Specifies the file(s) to delete. Specify multiple files by using wildcards. |
| /P |
Prompts for confirmation before deleting each file. |
Windows 2000 and Windows XP syntax
Deletes one or more files.
DEL [/P] [/F] [/S] [/Q] [/A[[:]attributes]] names
ERASE [/P] [/F] [/S] [/Q] [/A[[:]attributes]] names
| names |
Specifies a list of one or more files or directories. Wildcards may be used to delete multiple files. If a directory is specified, all files within the directory will be deleted. |
| /P |
Prompts for confirmation before deleting each file. |
| /F |
Force deleting of read-only files. |
| /S |
Delete specified files from all subdirectories. |
| /Q |
Quiet mode, do not ask if ok to delete on global wildcard |
| /A |
Selects files to delete based on attributes |
| attributes |
R Read-only files S System files H Hidden files A Files ready for archiving - Prefix meaning not |
If Command Extensions are enabled DEL and ERASE change as follows:
The display semantics of the /S switch are reversed in that it shows you only the files that are deleted, not the ones it could not find.
Windows 2000 and Windows XP recovery console syntax
Deletes one file.
del [drive:][path]filename
delete [drive:][path]filename
[drive:][path]filenameSpecifies the file to delete.
Delete only operates within the system directories of the current Windows installation, removable media, the root directory of any hard disk partition, or the local installation sources.
Del and delete do not support replaceable parameters (wild cards).
Examples
Notice: Users who are running Microsoft Windows 95 and are used to deleted items going to the recycle bin need to keep in mind that deleting files from MS-DOS does not send files to the recycle bin.
del test.tmp = Deletes the test.tmp in the directory that you currently are in, if the file exists.
del c:\windows\test.tmp = Delete the c:\windows\test.tmp in the windows directory if it exists.
del c:\windows\temp\*.* = (* is for wild character(s)) *.* indicates that you would like to delete all files in the c:\windows\temp directory.
del c:\windows\temp\?est.tmp = (? is a single wild character for one letter) This command would delete any file ending with est.tmp such as pest.tmp or zest.tmp... |
